On Thursday 16th October, Lincoln Arts Centre buzzed with energy and shared purpose as we welcomed health professionals, practitioners, artists, academics, third-sector colleagues, and young people to Prescribing Change: a day-long event exploring what a new model of social prescribing for young people in Lincolnshire could look like.
It was a day of recommitment to the power of creativity to create happier lives. 

The day began with David Brownlee from Data Culture Change setting the scene through Lincolnshire’s wellbeing data, grounding us in the real picture of people’s mental health and the urgent gaps that need to be filled. 

Our panel conversation got straight to the heart of the matter: why do young people so often fall through the cracks? The discussion was honest, challenging, and full of real-world insight about how services, schools, and the arts can work better together to make sure no one is left behind. 

We were also reminded of creativity’s power to shift perspectives. Zest’s Sound Board invited the audience into a playful, improvised exchange about listening, honesty, and emotional connection, while Linden Dance’s CAGED closed the day with a raw and physical expression of confinement and release a perfect metaphor for what it means to seek freedom in wellbeing. 

During our “Potential Solutions” session, one message stood out clearly: 

There’s an opportunity here to put artists and young people at the heart of creating happier lives and we need to act urgently as the health system alone cannot meet the rising demand for mental health support. 

Together, we began shaping what could become a new approach to social prescribing for young people in Lincolnshire. 

This model would pilot a youth-led initiative bringing together the University of Lincoln, Zest, cultural organisations, health professionals, and local authorities to co-create and embed sustainable creative health pathways for 13–26-year-olds. 

 It will combine research, creative collaboration, co-creation, delivery, evaluation, and national dissemination, with long-term aims of system change, NHS and local authority investment, and replicable frameworks that retain local nuance. 

The pilot programme will deliver: 

• A Youth Advisory Group following the Zest model. 

• Co-created, youth-led creative health activities across 2–3 priority locations 

• Weekly sessions and at least three long-term creative commissions 

• Mapping of new local social prescribing pathways 

• A national-facing conference 

• Evaluation and governance structures designed to embed sustainable, system-aware models of creative health for 13–26-year-olds 

But this conference wasn’t the end of the conversation — it was the start of something. 

What Happens Next 

The morning after the conference, the core team came back together – fuelled by caffeine and fresh enthusiasm – to review your feedback, post-it notes, provocations, and the commitments that filled our perspex wall of ideas. 

What emerged was clear: there’s a collective will to act. But this will take time and that’s a good thing. It means rigour. It means making sure what we co-design is rooted in evidence, partnership, and lived experience. 

Over the coming months, our focus will be on turning the learning from Prescribing Change into a workable, fundable model. That means: 

• Doing with data: We’ve gathered a huge amount of wellbeing data; now we’ll apply it across Greater Lincolnshire and define how to evaluate and measure success. 

• Understanding the system: Continue mapping the social prescribing landscape, exploring how CAMHS, Kooth, HAY Lincolnshire, CVSs, and other local support services fit together. 

• Building the framework: Refine our Theory of Change and funding proposal, shaping a clear model to be tested in 2–3 locations. 

• Identifying funders: Organise meetings, pitch ideas, and complete bid writing. 

• Forming the team: We’ve begun defining the role of a Creative Health Producer and compiling contacts for a potential Advisory Board and Youth Advisory Group, ensuring young people remain central. 

• Connecting the dots: Continue conversations with NHS partners, academics, and local leaders to align with national creative health research and policy. 

• Keeping the conversation alive: Through regular updates, a Creative Health newsletter, and future events. 

There’s still a way to go. We’ll need to secure investment to make this vision a reality but the foundations are strong, and the momentum from the day is too important to lose. 

If you were part of Prescribing Change and want to stay connected, collaborate, or support the next phase, we’d love to hear from you. Let’s keep the momentum going, and together, create new pathways for young people’s wellbeing across Lincolnshire.  

Get Involved 

📧 Email BAnderson@lincoln.ac.uk with the subject line SOCIAL PRESCRIBING.
(There may be a short delay in response, but every message will be logged and flagged.) 

🗓️ We’re working towards a completed proposal by November 2025.